India pointed out that Pakistan has been a “prolonged borrower from the IMF, with a very poor track record of implementation and of adherence to the IMF’s program conditions”.
India abstained from the vote at the IMF, pointing out that rewarding continued sponsorship of cross-border terrorism sends a dangerous message to the global community
For the Pakistani economy, the IMF bailout is key to its economy. In the week ending 25 April, Pakistan’s total foreign exchange reserves stood at $15.25 billion.
The growth projections for the US seem to be at odds with rising probability of recession put out by various agencies. Tariffs may weigh on US & China the most.
Pakistani economists have welcomed the government's decision to fully open the economy to foreign competition by reducing average import tariffs to 7.1% over five years.
The International Monetary Fund report states that policy uncertainty has surged since 2023 & remains high, leading to projects being abandoned or stalled.
For India, IMF has maintained its growth estimate at 7% for 2024-25, followed by 6.5 per cent next year. Slowdown from 8.2% growth in 2023 is attributed to exhaustion of pent-up demand.
Islamabad-based think-tank PICSS's new report says Pakistan saw 'pronounced escalation' in violence last year, with 3,413 conflict-related deaths compared to 1,950 in previous year.
Many of you might think I got something so wrong in National Interest pieces written this year. I might disagree! But some deserve a Mea Culpa. I’d deal with the most recent this week.
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